Publications

Backloading: the EU Parliament and the Council adopted the backloading proposal,respectively, on 10th December and 16th December. On 8th January, Member states agreed on rules to remove up to 900 million permits from 2014-2016. Free allocations: on 18th December, the EU Commission adopted a first commissiondecision on free allocation of emission allowances by Member States […]

During the Phase II of the European Trading Scheme, installations had the option to surrender carbon credits from project-based mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol (CERs and ERUs). The rules set by Member States and approved by the European Commission capped the demand at around 1,400 MtCO2 between 2008 and 2012. In the end, over 1 […]

By Olivier Gloaguen and Emilie Alberola CO2 emissions generated by installations covered by the EU ETS decreased by 12.3 % since 2005, i.e a decline by 2.6% per year during Phase 2 of the EU ETS while the emission cap increased by 1% per year. The EU ETS ended Phase 2 with a surplus of […]

By Marion Dupont, Romain Morel, Valentin Bellassen and Mariana Deheza For those who expect “binding” emission reductions targets in the future international climate agreement to be signed in Paris in 2015, the Warsaw Conference (November 11 to 23, 2013) yielded as much progress as it could. That means little beyond a timetable. However, for those […]

Backloading and reforms of the EU ETS: on 10th December, the EU Parliament voted the backloading proposal. The vote of the Council is scheduled on 17th December. The postponement of EUA will be made in 2014 and in 2015 (not in 2013). 2030 climate and energy package: the EC is planning to release its White […]

By Nicolas Berghmans and Emilie Alberola Since 2005, 1,453 power and combined heat and power (CHP) generation plants have participated in the European Union Emission Trading Scheme, or EU ETS, which requires them to comply with an annual CO2 emission cap set by the European Commission. Thermal power plants that use coal (bituminous coal, lignite, […]

Backloading and reforms of the EU ETS: on 10th December, the EU Parliament voted the backloading proposal. The vote of the Council is scheduled on 17th December. The postponement of EUA will be made in 2014 and in 2015 (not in 2013). 2030 climate and energy package: the EC is planning to release its White […]

By Johan Tyszler et Cécile Bordier,I4CE Le gouvernement a annoncé le 9 juillet 2013 la généralisation des compteurs électriques communicants sur le territoire. L’introduction des compteurs communicants devrait permettre une meilleure gestion du réseau, notamment liée à la part croissante des énergies renouvelables dans la production d’électricité. Les économies d’électricité restent difficiles à prévoir car […]

By Olivier GLOAGUEN and Emilie ALBEROLA It has been repeatedly said that the economic slowdown that began in 2008 largely explains the fall in carbon emissions recorded in Europe since the introduction of the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). In fact, the European Union stated this very clearly in its initial report on […]

Backloading and reforms of the EU ETS: the Commission specified that further structural reform proposals would not be put forward till the EU agrees on backloading plans. 2030 climate and energy package: the Commission will release a communication before the end of the year but there are little expectations for legislative proposals before the EU […]

Forthcoming free allowance allocations: the European Commission will allocate 6.6 billion EUA for free to industrial installations, which is 11.5% less than what was initially demanded by Member states. The EUA price stabilised between €4 and €5: despite the uncertainty surrounding the political issue of “backloading”, the EUA price remained just below the €5 per […]

By Johan Tyszler, Cécile Bordier and Alexia Leseur The National Debate on Energy Transition in France highlighted issues relating to the social acceptability of the measures in question, and especially the inclusion of fuel poverty. However, the wide range of determining factors for fuel poverty (high energy prices, poor living conditions, and limited financial resources) […]

To establish a climate and energy policy in the EU in 2030, I4CE addresses three main recommendations to the European Commission: (1) Establish a binding, single and ambitious CO2 emission reduction target of at least 40% in 2030. (2) Put the EU ETS as the central and non-residual instrument aimed at promoting cost-effective reductions in […]

By Oliver Sartor, Thomas Spencer Poland is a particularly carbon intensive economy. This has created concern that it may be particularly exposed to carbon leakage. However, there is an absence of robust and transparent empirical research on carbon leakage risks in Poland. This study aims at filling this gap by assessing the impact of EU […]

The EU ETS verified emissions: 1,950 MtCO2 in 2012, i.e. a 2% fall compared with 2011 and a 13.5% fall compared with 2008. Phase 2 compliance: an excess amount of 1,425 Mt including the use of 1,059 million international credits. Backloading: the European Parliament’s ENVI Commission will vote again on 19 June. Competitiveness: the European […]

By Oliver Sartor and Benoît Leguet, I4CE Is the French energy transition compatible with economic growth and a “competitive” French economy? Our answer is “yes, with some conditions”. The French economy is better positioned today for a meaningful energy transition than it has been for over 40 years. At the level of the macro-economy, a […]

Achieving the “energy transition”, it is necessary to ask how individual investments support or hinder progress towards a low-carbon, energy-efficient future. This requires a a systemic approach – or “scope 4” analysis. As demonstrated by the Keystone XL Oil pipeline project in North America, even when individual pieces of infrastructure emit relatively low levels of […]

Backloading was rejected by the European Parliament on 16 April and referred to the Parliament’s ENVI Commission. A new plenary session vote has been scheduled for early July. On ICE Futures Europe, 52% of the whole monthly volume of the daily spot contract has been traded on April the 16th. Structural reforms: discussion at the […]

By Frederic Baron, Valentin Bellassen and Mariana Deheza In a framework where no common forestry policy exists at the EU level (such as the Common Agriculture Policy for agriculture), this report lists EU policies that have an impact on climate change mitigation that can be achieved by the forestry sector. With the objective of analyzing […]

One of the most controversial changes to the EU ETS in Phase 3 (2013-2020) has been the introduction of emissions-performance benchmarks for determining free allocations to non-electricity producers. Phases 1 and 2 used National Allocation Plans (NAPs). For practical reasons NAPs were drawn up by each Member State, but this led to problems, including over-generous […]